


An Act of Charity

by Squirrel_Stone



Series: Darcy Lewis, PR Master [6]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Darcy Lewis PR Master, Gen, Mentions of Cancer, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-26
Updated: 2015-01-26
Packaged: 2018-03-09 03:28:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3234572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Squirrel_Stone/pseuds/Squirrel_Stone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony Stark agrees to spend the day volunteering with orphans and learns a lot about the PR manager.</p>
            </blockquote>





	An Act of Charity

Getting Tony to attend a charity event for orphans was surprisingly easy. In fact, he’d been rather enthusiastic about the idea. Darcy wasn’t entirely sure why he was so happy about it, but she knew better than to question Tony’s charity.

The car rolled up to an orphanage, and Darcy pulled out a piece of paper that read _Spend a Day with Iron Man_ on the top in bright red. It outlined how the day would go, from playtime to lunch to a little session where Tony would show off his suit and let kids wear the mask. “Please don’t go all Stark on me,” Darcy begged.

Tony actually looked a little offended. “Me? Never!” he insisted before putting the car in park and getting out, walking around to open Darcy’s door as well. He even offered Darcy a hand to help her out of the car, which she gratefully accepted.

Darcy didn’t do much other than take notes and direct the photographer every now and then, keeping to herself and looking around every room she got the chance to visit in awe. Tony couldn’t help but notice how enamored Darcy was with the place, but it wasn’t the best time to comment. After all, he was in the middle of a game of Duck, Duck, Goose.

It was during lunch that Tony finally snuck away for a minute, following Darcy. When she walked into a room, he stayed outside with the door ajar so he could see and hear what was happening.

Tony watched as Darcy hugged one of the caretakers in the house.

“Thank you so much for doing this, dear,” the elder woman declared. “It really means a lot to these kids.”

Tony could tell Darcy was smiling just by her voice. “Any time, Mrs. Hathaway,” she assured her. “I don’t know what I would have done without you and this place.”

The woman just nodded and sighed. “I only did what should have been done years before,” she told the brunette. “How’s your head?”

Darcy’s shoulders fell a little. “It’s alright.” She glanced back at the door, and Tony quickly hid behind the wall. “I should probably get back to things; Tony’s kind of a mess.”

Mrs. Hathaway laughed. “Very well, dear,” she conceded. “Oh, and if you have the time, you might want to see Andrea. She misses you.”

“Will do,” Darcy promised before leaving the room, Tony barely making it around a corner to hide in time. He watched as Darcy ran down the stairs, wiping tears from her eyes as she did.

Tony walked back to the door and opened it. The old woman turned around, thinking it was Darcy again, only to very nearly jump out of her skin upon seeing Tony. “Goodness, Mr. Stark, don’t you know not to sneak up on an old woman?” she chided.

“Darcy lived here?”

The woman hesitated before nodding. “She did,” Mrs. Hathaway confirmed. “I kept her as long as I could; most of the system isn’t as kind as I am.” There was something hidden behind the explanation, and Tony had a feeling in the pit of his stomach as to what it was. “You’ve got a great girl there. Very intelligent and loyal to boot. Don’t hurt her, Mr. Stark. She hides it, but she’s very fragile.”

Tony nodded slowly before leaving the room, a frown on his face.

That frown was hard to keep away for the rest of the event. In fact, the whole afternoon passed in a blur, Tony fighting off the urge to outright stare at the young PR expert.

They had just gotten into the car and driven away when Tony asked. “How long?”

Darcy looked at him in confusion, her eyebrows furrowing. “What?”

Tony glanced at her then back at the road, narrowly avoiding a truck he was speeding past. “Sorry,” he muttered. “I thought I was paying better attention.”

“Pull over,” Darcy ordered, and Tony did just that. She got out of the car and gestured for Tony to do the same. Once Tony had vacated the driver’s seat, she took his place. “You’re too distracted to drive.”

For the first time since becoming Iron Man, Tony didn’t object to not driving. He stared at Darcy the entire ride back until they were about a block away from the Tower. “How long have you been sick?” he finally asked, clarifying the question he’d asked earlier.

Darcy’s face fell, and she began to explain. “Doesn’t matter,” she declared. “I’m not anymore. None of my other foster parents bothered to get me into the hospital despite the headaches until Mrs. Hathaway. All I know is that if it wasn’t for her, I’d probably be dead now.”

“So… it _is_ a tumor?” Tony checked.

“Was,” Darcy corrected as they pulled into the parking garage. Once they were in a spot, she turned off the car and looked to Tony. “I uh… the doctors got rid of it.” She sat back in the seat, her hands still on the wheel. It was half true.

The brunette got out of the car, Tony following her lead.

“Please don’t tell anyone. The last thing I need is Jane and Bruce insisting I go to a doctor again and Thor trying to get me to visit Asgard so Odin can figure out how to fix me.”

Tony nodded, not saying a word.


End file.
